China to become target market for Vietnamese seafood exports
VOV.VN - With aquatic exports to the United States and the EU encountering difficulties, China is projected to become the target market for Vietnamese fisheries products in 2024 - 2025, according to the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP).
China increasingly relies on seafood imports
China is always one of the top three importers of Vietnamese seafood, behind the US and Japan, spending US$1.6 billion on purchasing Vietnamese seafood exports last year, up 66% year on year.
Experts say despite export turnover falling as a result of reduced export prices, there remains ample room for seafood exports to the market this year.
Statistics show Vietnam raked in US$1.14 billion from exporting fisheries products to China between Jan. – Oct. 2023.
Although pangasius and shrimp exports witnessed a downturn, other aquatic products such as white-leg shrimp, black tiger shrimp, giant fish, yellow snapper, mackerel, grouper fish, octopus, and clams enjoyed strong growth.
Chinese localities including Guangdong, Zhanjiang, Guangxi, Fujian, and Shanghai made up the largest consumers of Vietnamese seafood.
Le Hang, communications director of the VASEP, attributed the bright prospects for Vietnamese seafood exports to China this year to a number of favourable factors, including the ending of the COVID-19 pandemic, China's trade with the world becoming completely normal, and recent positive signs recorded in the Chinese economy itself.
Most notably, with a favourable geographical location coupled with a reduction in logistics costs compared to regional peers, Vietnamese businesses can benefit from the huge opportunities to export their seafood products to the market this year.
Moreover, China’s recent suspension of seafood imports from Japan is anticipated to create additional export opportunities for other countries, including Vietnam, she noted.
Most notably, China’s investment in aquaculture and seafood exports has also gradually decreased over recent years due to COVID-19 and economic transition trends.
Amid geopolitical changes, high inflation, and energy crisis in the world, experts say aquatic exports to the US and EU markets will encounter difficulties, meaning China will become the target market for seafood exports from Vietnam in the 2024 - 2025 period.
Grasping market demand and consumer tastes
As China is their potential buyer, Vietnamese processors have made thorough preparations to penetrate this lucrative market.
Representatives of Vietnamese firms say seafood exports to China rebounded in the fourth quarter, with the number of shrimp export orders to this market increasing significantly.
To capitalize on this market, VASEP experts advise the business community to grasp market demand and consumer tastes, as well as to organise additional business-to-business (B2B) matching sessions to gain more insights into the market’s regulations, especially amid changes in import and export policies.
In addition, they also propose expanding the list of seafood firms eligible to export goods to China, thereby opening doors for other fresh aquatic species to be exported to this market and facilitating the granting of export codes to businesses, as well as maintaining smooth customs clearances at border gates.
